Combined clip-board and marking device



April .24, 1962 s. N. ROSENTHAL COMBINED CLIP-BOARD AND MARKING DEVICE Filed July 29, 1959 m w m m United States Patent 3,030,922 COMBINED CLIP-BOARD AND MARKING DEVICE Sidney N. Rosenthal, Belle Harbor, N.Y., assignor to Speedry Chemical Products, Inc, Richmond Hill, NY. Filed July 29, 1959, Ser. No. 830,358 2 Claims. (Cl. 120-1) The present invention relates to a device which facilitates marking different papers of a sheaf and packages for sorting with identifying colors and indicia.

There are many instances when it is desirable for a person to be able to mark different papers of a sheaf and packages with different colored marks. For example, a truck dispatcher may have a number of orders to deliver merchandise on different routes which may be indicated by marking the orders and packages with a particular color code. Furthermore, it is desirable that the dispatcher be able to Write information on the order with the same marking instruments that he uses for marking a color thereon or on the package. However, it is practically impossible for a dispatcher to keep track of crayons or ink dispensers for the plurality of colors required.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a combined clip-board and marking apparatus which facilitates marking any of the papers of a sheaf or packages with any desired color.

Another object is to provide a combined clip-board and marking apparatus of the type indicated in which separate containers for marking fluid of diiferent colors are mounted on and are quickly available for use with the clip-board.

Another object is to provide a combined clip-board and marking apparatus of the type indicated in which each of the plurality of containers for marking fluids of different colors is so constructed as to adapt it to be used as a writing instrument and is provided with an index of its color.

Still another object is to provide a combined clipboard and marking device of the type indicated which is of simple and compact construction to adapt it to be held in one hand and one which may be economically manufactured.

These and other objects will become more apparent from the following description and drawing in which like reference characters denote like parts throughout the several views. It is to be expressly understood, however, that the drawing is for the purpose of illustration only and is not a definition of the limits of the invention, reference being had for this purpose to the appended claims.

In the drawing:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a combined clipboard and marking apparatus incorporating the novel features of the present invention and showing a rack at one edge of the clip-board for mounting marking instruments in the form of containers for marking fluid of different colors;

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2-2 of FIGURE 1 to show one of the holders on the rack for mounting a container and forming a closure for the open end thereof; and

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of one edge of the rack for mounting a plurality of the containers and showing the elastic loop for supporting a pencil.

Referring to FIGURE 1 of the drawing, the combined clip-board and marking apparatus comprises a clipboard 5 and a rack 8 at one edge of the board having a plurality of holders 9 for mounting separate containers It) for marking fluid of diflerent colors. The clip-board 5 is of conventional form having a clip 6 adjacent the top for clipping a sheaf of papers 7 on the board. The combined clip-board 5 and rack 8 is adapted to be held in one hand and the rack is so arranged as to facilitate the marking of any paper of a sheaf 7 clipped to the board by one of the marking containers held in the other hand.

As shown in FIGURES l and 2, the rack 8 is in the form of a strip of suitable material, such as wood, having a portion 15 overlying a portion of the board 16 adjacent its edge with the overlapping portions attached to each other. This construction provides a shoulder 17 at one side of the clipboard 5 which facilitates aligning a sheaf of papers on the board. In the illustrated embodiment the rack 8 has a longitudinally extending slot 18 in one side and the edge portion 16 of the clipboard 5 projects into the slot with a friction fit to adapt a rack to be detachably connected to different clip-boards or the parts may be permanently attached by a suitable adhesive 19.

The holders 9 for the containers 10 may be of any suitable forrn providing wells in the rack to receive the ends of the containers. In the illustrated embodiment, the holders 9 are in the form of inverted closure caps positioned in holes 20 in the rack and having cylindrical sleeves 21 at the peripheries of the holes. The cylindrical sleeves 21 of the holders 9 extend upwardly beyond the top of the rack 8 to provide a finger grip between the rack and containers 1% and each sleeve is of a color corresponding to the color of the marking fluid in its particular container. The closure cap holders 9 are of one-piece construction having a transverse wall 22 at the bottom which is flush with the bottom of the rack.

Each container 10 supported in one of the holders 9 is in the form of a bottle having a hollow reduced neck portion 25 projecting from one end. A nib of porous absorbent material extends from the interior of the con tainer through the hollow reduced neck 25 and the outwardly projecting end is formed to provide a writing nib 26. The nib in the container it from which the nib 26 projects from the neck 25, is saturated with the marking fluid comprising a coloring medium in a quick drying solvent which wets the nib to render it constantly available for marking. This type of marking instrument is available on the open market and extensively used and is described and claimed in my US. Letters Patent No. 2,713,- 176, issued July 19, 1955. The reduced neck portion 25 has an offset boss 27 adjacent the container which closely fits and frictionally engages the upper open end of the holder 9 in which it is mounted. Thus, each holder 9 supports a container 10 for a marking fluid in an upright position at the edge of the clip-board 5. In addition, the cap like structure of the holder 9 cooperates with the olfset boss 27 of the reduced neck 25 to form a closure for the open end of the container.

Each of the containers 10, constituting a marking instrument, contains a marking fluid of a particular color which is different from the color of the marking fluid in the other containers. Thus, a marking instrument for marking packages or papers of a sheaf 7 with a particular color is readily available on the clip-board 5 which may be quickly removed from the holder 9 with one hand to mark a paper clipped to the board and quickly returned to its holder. The projecting portion 26 of the nib also permits the marking instrument to be used for writing indicia on any paper of the sheaf '7 in the color desired. The holder 9 for each container 10 has a color corresponding to the particular color the marking fluid has in its container so that the container for a particular color may be easily and quickly identified. In addition, the rack 8 may be provided with an elastic loop 32 at one edge for holding a conventional pencil 33 or crayon.

The combined clip-board and marking apparatus is adapted to be held in one hand in a conventional manner with a sheaf of papers 7 held to the board by the clip 6. When it is desired to mark a package or one of the papers of the sheaf with a marking fluid of a particular color, the container 10 for that particular color is Withdrawn from its holder 9 and the information marked or written on the package and on the paper on the clipboard after which the container is returned to its holder. When the container is positioned in the holder 9, the latter cooperates with the reduced neck portion 25 to form a closure for the open end of the container and hold the nib 26 spaced from the bottom of the cap. This prevents evaporation of the marking fluid and drying out of the nib 26 so that each of the containers is at all times in condition to be used as a marking instrument for writing on a paper of the sheaf 7. The clip-board 5' which holds and provides a backing for the papers and the rack 8 mounted on the board for holding the marking containers 10 cooperate in marking papers with particular colors.

It will now be observed that the present invention provides a combined clipboard and marking apparatus which facilitates marking packages or any of a sheaf of papers in any desired color. It will further be observed that the present invention provides a combined clip-board and marking apparatus in which the marking instruments are in the form of containers for a fluid of a particular color. It will still further be observed that the present invention provides a combined clip-board and marking apparatus in which the plurality of containers for marking fluid of different colors are mounted in upright position in holders on the clip-board which renders them readily available for use with the clip-board to mark papers thereon.

This invention will be useful in routing packages. For example, a dispatcher may mark all packages in a warehouse that are to be routed to a certain locality with one color and may mark the bill of lading with the same color. This will enable the carrier immediately to recognize the packages and identify them with the appropriate bili of lading.

While a single embodiment of the invention is herein illustrated and described, it will be understood that changes may be made in the constmction and arrangement of elements without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Therefore, without limitation in this respect the invention is defined by the following claims:

1. A portable, one-hand-held marking set comprising a plurality of felt nib type marking devices, all identical in construction, but each containing a different color ink, each pen comprising a relatively short, cylindrically shaped ink storing container of a relatively wide diameter so as to be short and squat in shape and a cylindrically shaped, elongated, tubular neck secured to, and opening into, one end of the container and being coaxial therewith, and through which the nib extends; a cap for the neck in the form of an elongated cylinder, longer in length than the neck, having one open end for fitting over the neck and one closed end, and means for frictionally locking the cap to the neck with the neck completely contained and sealed within the cap; a support means in the form of an elongated, fiat, normally horizontally arranged member, having a top flat face and a bottom face and of a thickness between the faces which is slightly less than the length of said caps; a plurality of sockets formed in the member, each socket comprising a cylindrical hole, the holes being uniformly spaced apart, perpendicular to the flat face, extending completely through the member from the top to the bottom faces thereof and the holes being arranged in a single line along the length of the member and each being of a diameter which is slightly less than the diameter of said caps, and the cap being force fitted into said hole with its closed end being exposed at the bottom face of the member and its open end being at said flat face, the caps each being frictionally held within their respective holes by a frictional force which is greater than the frictional force which holds each cap upon its marked device neck, whereby the marking devices may each be secured to the member by being frictionally locked within a socket consisting of its respective cap which is frictionally locked within a hole, with the marking devices being substantially vertically arranged and inverted relative to the flat face, and being removable, for use, from their respective sockets by a manually applied force, and the caps being removable from the member by a manually applied force which is considerably greater than the first mentioned manually applied force, for replacing the respective marking device and its cap; and both forces being considerably greater than the force of gravity so that the member may be carried in any plane without the marking devices falling out of their respective sockets and off the member.

2. A construction according to claim 1 wherein the member has a longitudinally extending groove centered along one edge, and including a clip board thinner than the member and having a clip at one end, with one edge of the clip board being friction fitted in the groove of the member whereby the member forms a one hand holder for the clip board upon which a user may write with his other hand with a marking device selected from the plurality mounted in the member, each of two parallel edges of the clip board being dimensioned to fit frictionally in the member groove as desired.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 876,223 Newman et a1. Jan. 7, 1908 1,629,987 Blaokman May 24, 1927 1,670,722 Horix May 22, 1928 1,762,104 Liddell June 3, 1930 1,922,891 Grifiith Aug. 15, 1933 2,713,176 Rosenthal July 19, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS 8,257 Great Britain Oct. 4, 1909 

